Nevados de Chillán

Nevados de Chillán has produced 32 eruptions over nearly 9,000 years, making it one of Chile's most active volcanic complexes.

The active vent has migrated progressively along the NNW–SSE axis over time: from Volcán Viejo (17th–19th centuries) to Volcán Nuevo (1906–1945) to Volcán Arrau (1973–1986) to Nicanor crater (2016–2022).

Volcán Nuevo grew as a lava dome over a continuous 39-year eruption from 1906 to 1945 — one of the longest sustained dome-building episodes recorded at any Andean volcano.

A major ski resort operates on the volcano's NW flank, making it one of the only ski resorts in the world built on a volcano that erupted within the past five years.

Three nested Pleistocene calderas beneath the current volcanic complex produced ignimbrite sheets that traveled more than 100 km into Chile's Central Depression.

The Volcán Arrau dome complex grew from 1973 to 1986 on the SE flank of Volcán Nuevo, eventually exceeding Nuevo's height.

The 2016–2022 eruption at Nicanor crater lasted approximately six years, with dome growth, pyroclastic flows, and intermittent ash emissions.

The name Nevados de Chillán means ‘Snow-capped (peaks) of Chillán’ in Spanish, and ‘Chillán’ derives from Mapuche language.

Seasonal snow and small glaciers on the volcanic summits create lahar hazards when eruptions trigger rapid melting.

The thermal hot springs (Termas de Chillán) on the volcano's flanks have been used since pre-Columbian times by the Mapuche people.